A federal judge has dismissed the case against Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy and three other men. Their charges stemmed from a standoff with federal authorities back in 2014 over cattle grazing rights.
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Cliven Bundy, his wife, Carol Bundy, and his lawyer Bret Whipple walk through the lobby of a Las Vegas federal courthouse on Jan. 8, 2018.(Photo: Robert Anglen/The Republic)

"The appearance of impropriety and the conflicts of of interest have already occurred in this case," lawyers said in a heavily redacted motion. "Justice requires that, to avoid any other appearance of unfairness, the court disqualify the USAO of Nevada."

The motion, like hundreds of documents in the Bundy standoff case, was filed partially under seal and cannot be viewed by the public in its entirety.

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U.S. District Court Judge Gloria Navarro found federal prosecutors recklessly and outrageously violated the men's rights to a fair trial by withholding evidence that could have helped exonerate them. She dismissed the case against Bundy and others "with prejudice," meaning they cannot be retried.

The Nevada U.S. Attorney's Office did not respond to requests for comment Saturday.

Defendants David and Melvin Bundy, Joseph O'Shaughnessy and Jason Woods said the Nevada federal prosecutors have "demonstrated an inability or refusal to recognize" that they could be called as witnesses.

The four men, along with co-defendant Brian Cavalier, are scheduled to begin trial Feb. 26. They are the last of 17 defendants charged in the 2014 Bundy Ranch standoff, in which cattle ranchers and militia members are accused of using guns to prevent federal agents from seizing Bundy's cattle on public land.

The defendants said they are not looking for a change of venue to have the trial moved to another state, but are asking that new attorneys be brought in from other jurisdictions.

"Assistant U.S. Attorney's Steven Myhre, Daniel Schiess, Nadia Ahmed and Erin Creegan have been prosecuting the Bundy case for years," defendants said in their motion. "They have made themselves material witnesses and must withdraw from the conflicting role."

The defendants are calling for a hearing to determine who is qualified to prosecute the case and said any new prosecutors should be prepared to question their colleagues on the witness stand.

"Their colleagues from another district will be expected to examine them at trial and uphold their ethical obligations to the fullest degree, including investigating the truthfulness and consistency of their colleagues; statements made under oath," the motion states.

Defense: Jury should see prosecutors testify

The defendants also want to ensure a jury is able to view live the testimony of the prosecutors in the Bundy case, as they would any other case agent or witness.

"It goes without saying that a witness to this case cannot serve as the member of the prosecution team," the motion states.

A federal investigator alleged in a Nov. 27 memo to the assistant U.S. attorney general that prosecutors in the Bundy Ranch standoff trial covered up misconduct by law-enforcement agents who engaged in "likely policy, ethical and legal violations."

Special Agent Larry Wooten, a lead investigator and case agent for the Department of Interior and the Bureau of Land Management, said he was brought in by the BLM to examine the armed standoff.

Many of Wooten's complaints concerned misconduct by Dan Love, the BLM agent in charge of the cattle roundup, who was fired for misconduct in an unrelated case.

Wooten said he spent two years and 10 months examining the case. In his letter, he said BLM supervisors "made a mockery of our position of special trust and confidence," ignoring the law and likely jeopardizing the trial against the Bundys and other defendants.

Wooten wrote that Myhre initially appeared to take his concerns seriously but later adopted a "don't ask, don't tell" attitude.

Calling prosecutors to stand is rare

The motion acknowledges that calling prosecutors as witness is uncommon, and courts "generally disfavor" it.

But the defense says courts recognize that sometimes there is a compelling need for prosecutors to testify about factual events at issue in a trial.

Defense lawyers argue in the motion that defendants have a constitutional right to a fair trial and an ability to confront witnesses.

They say U.S. Attorney's Office rules "echo the mandate to avoid even the appearance of impropriety."

Navarro castigated prosecutors on the Bundy case last week, saying "the universal sense of justice has been violated" by withholding evidence.

She said prosecutors have a sworn duty to ensure defendants receive a fair trial by bringing forward any evidence that could affect the outcome. Instead, she said, they showed "a reckless disregard for the constitutional obligation to seek and provide evidence."

CLOSE

Ryan Bundy, outside the federal courthouse in Las Vegas, reacts to the judge's declaration of a mistrial in the Bundy Ranch standoff case. Robert Anglen/azcentral

Navarro said ordering a new trial would not be sufficient to address violations by prosecutors and actually would give them an unfair advantage in the case against David and Melvin Bundy and others.

She cited several pieces of evidence that prosecutors failed to disclose that could have changed the outcome of the trial:

Records about surveillance at the Bundy Ranch;

Maps about government surveillance;

Records about the presence of government snipers;

FBI logs about activity at the ranch in the days leading up to standoff;

Law-enforcement assessments dating to 2012 that found the Bundys posed no threat;

And internal-affairs reports about misconduct by Bureau of Land Management agents.

Prosecutors charged defendants with making false claims about snipers and video surveillance to incite their supporters. But documents now show there were indeed government tactical teams and multiple video cameras positioned around the ranch.

Bundy standoff: A test of public land use

In this April 12, 2014, file photo, the Bundy family and their supporters gather together under a Interstate 15 highway overpass just outside of Bunkerville, Nevada, to confront Bureau of Land Management agents and demand the release of their impounded cattle.(Photo: Associated Press)

The Bundy Ranch standoff became one of the most high-profile land-use cases in modern Western history. It pitted cattle ranchers, anti-government protesters and militia members against the Bureau of Land Management.

For decades, the BLM ordered Cliven Bundy to remove his cattle from federal lands, and in 2014 the agency obtained a court order to seize his cattle as payment for more than $1 million in unpaid grazing fees.

The Bundys launched a social-media rallying cry. Hundreds of supporters, including members of several militia groups, converged on the Bundys' ranch.

Environmentalists and civil-rights groups say the Bundys are not heroes but lawbreakers who for decades have grazed cattle on public land as if it were their own.

For many Americans, images of the four-day standoff in a dusty wash below Interstate 15 northeast of Las Vegas were shocking. Protesters, ranchers and militia members took armed positions around federal law-enforcement officers, some lying prone on freeway overpasses and sighting down long rifles.

Federal agents abandoned the roundup, saying they were outgunned and in fear for their lives.

Ammon Bundy is greeted by family and friends at the U.S. District Courthouse in Las Vegas after being released from federal custody on Nov. 30, 2017. A mistrial was declared in the case Dec. 20, 2017.
Ken Ritter/Associated Press

Ryan Bundy, left, walks out of federal court with his wife Angela Bundy, Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2017, in Las Vegas. Ryan Bundy, along with his father Cliven Bundy, brother Ammon Bundy, and co-defendant Ryan Payne, are accused of leading an armed standoff in 2014 against government agents in a cattle grazing dispute. (AP Photo/John Locher)
John Locher, AP

Ryan Bundy, center, walks out of federal court with his wife Angela Bundy, Tuesday, Nov. 14, 2017, in Las Vegas. Ryan Bundy, along with his father Cliven Bundy, brother Ammon Bundy, and co-defendant Ryan Payne, are accused of leading an armed standoff in 2014 against government agents in a cattle grazing dispute. (AP Photo/John Locher)
John Locher, AP

Supporters of defendants in the Bundy Ranch standoff trial stand outside U.S. District Court in Las Vegas on Aug. 14, 2017. The supporters piled up "tea bags" as a reminder of liberty.
Lucas M. Thomas/The Spectrum

Supporters of defendants in the Bundy Ranch standoff trial stand outside U.S. District Court in Las Vegas on Aug. 14, 2017. The supporters piled up "tea bags" as a reminder of liberty.
Lucas M. Thomas/The Spectrum

Supporters of defendants in the Bundy Ranch standoff trial stand outside U.S. District Court in Las Vegas on Aug. 14, 2017. The supporters piled up "tea bags" as a reminder of liberty.
Lucas M. Thomas/The Spectrum

Nine-year-old Paylynn Lawrimore holds up a sign in support of defendants on trial in federal court, Wednesday, April 12, 2017, in Las Vegas. A federal jury in Las Vegas heard closing arguments in the trial of six men accused of wielding weapons to stop federal agents from rounding up cattle near Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy's property in 2014. (AP Photo/John Locher)
John Locher/Associated Press

Todd Bethell holds up a sign in support of defendants on trial in federal court, Wednesday, April 12, 2017, in Las Vegas. A federal jury in Las Vegas heard closing arguments in the trial of six men accused of wielding weapons to stop federal agents from rounding up cattle near Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy's property in 2014. (AP Photo/John Locher)
John Locher/Associated Press

Marie Ries (center) marches with others in support of defendants on trial in federal court, on April 12, 2017, in Las Vegas. A federal jury in Las Vegas heard closing arguments in the trial of six men accused of wielding weapons to stop federal agents from rounding up cattle near Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy's property in 2014. Two men were convicted; the judge declared a mistrial for the other four men, who are being retried.
John Locher/Associated Press

People march in support of defendants on trial in federal court on April 12, 2017, in Las Vegas. A federal jury in Las Vegas heard closing arguments in the trial of six men accused of wielding weapons to stop federal agents from rounding up cattle near Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy's property in 2014.
John Locher/Associated Press

A protester holds up a flag outside of a federal courthouse, on April 10, 2017, in Las Vegas. The protester and others stood outside the courthouse in support of six defendants accused of wielding weapons against federal agents during a 2014 standoff involving cattleman and states' rights advocate Cliven Bundy.
John Locher/Associated Press

Brand Thornton blows a horn in support of defendants on trial at a federal courthouse, on April 10, 2017, in Las Vegas. Protesters gathered outside the courthouse in support of six defendants accused of wielding weapons against federal agents during a 2014 standoff involving cattleman and states' rights advocate Cliven Bundy.
John Locher/Associated Press

David Zion Brugger waves a flag in support of defendants on trial at a federal courthouse, on April 10, 2017, in Las Vegas. Protesters gathered outside the courthouse in support of six defendants accused of wielding weapons against federal agents during a 2014 standoff involving cattleman and states' rights advocate Cliven Bundy.
John Locher/Associated Press

People rally in support of defendants on trial at a federal courthouse, on April 10, 2017, in Las Vegas. Protesters gathered outside the courthouse in support of six defendants accused of wielding weapons against federal agents during a 2014 standoff involving cattleman and states' rights advocate Cliven Bundy.
John Locher/Associated Press

People rally in support of defendants on trial at a federal courthouse, on April 10, 2017, in Las Vegas. Protesters gathered outside the courthouse in support of six defendants accused of wielding weapons against federal agents during a 2014 standoff involving cattleman and states' rights advocate Cliven Bundy.
John Locher/Associated Press

A protester, who declined to give his name, holds up a flag outside of a federal courthouse, on April 10, 2017, in Las Vegas. The protester and others stood outside the courthouse in support of six defendants accused of wielding weapons against federal agents during a 2014 standoff involving cattleman and states' rights advocate Cliven Bundy.
John Locher/Associated Press

Supporters and critics of defendants on trial at the federal courthouse gather Monday, Feb. 6, 2017, in Las Vegas. Jury selection began in Nevada for the federal trial of six defendants accused of taking arms against federal agents herding cattle off public land near Nevada cattleman and states' rights advocate Cliven Bundy's ranch in April 2014.
John Locher/Associated Press

Brand Thornton blows a horn in support of defendants on trial at the federal courthouse, Monday, Feb. 6, 2017, in Las Vegas. Jury selection began in Nevada for the federal trial of six defendants accused of taking arms against federal agents herding cattle off public land near Nevada cattleman and states' rights advocate Cliven Bundy's ranch in April 2014.
John Locher/Associated Press

In this Oct. 28, 2016, file photo, Marcus Mumford, attorney for Ammon Bundy, appears outside court after defendants in a ranching standoff were found not guilty in Portland, Ore. A federal judge has dropped one of three charges filed against the lawyer for the leader of the armed occupation at an Oregon wildlife refuge.
Associated Press

In this Sept. 13, 2016, file photo, a protester who would only identify himself as Robert flies an upside-down U.S. flag outside the federal courthouse in Portland, Ore., during the trial for Ammon and Ryan Bundy and five others over the occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge.
Associated Press

FILE - In this Sept. 13, 2016, file photo, protestors gather outside the federal courthouse in Portland, Ore., during the trial for the Bundy brothers and five others. It has been a month since jury selection began in the trial of the brothers and five others charged in connection with the winter takeover of the national wildlife refuge in southeast Oregon. (AP Photo/Don Ryan, file)
AP

FILE - In this Sept. 13, 2016, file photo, a protestor, who would not identify himself, sits outside the federal courthouse as his horse, Lady Liberty, gets a drink from a fountain in Portland, Ore., during the trial for the Bundy brothers and five others. It has been a month since jury selection began in the trial of the brothers and five others charged in connection with the winter takeover of the national wildlife refuge in southeast Oregon. (AP Photo/Don Ryan, file)
AP

A protester holds a photo of LaVoy Finicum outside a federal court in Tucson, Ariz, on Friday, March 4, 2016. Protesters gathered in protest over the shooting death of LaVoy Finicum, an Arizona rancher shot and killed by authorities during the Oregon standoff.
Nick Oza/The Republic

Mary Essenmacher of the Tucson area participates in a March 4 protest. A small group of armed protesters, led by Roy Warden, lined up outside Tuscon federal court on March 4, 2016, demanding justice for an Arizona rancher shot and killed by authorities during the siege of an Oregon wildlife refuge.
Robert Anglen/The Republic

Mary Essenmacher, from Tucson, participates in a March 4 protest. A small group of armed protesters, led by Roy Warden, lined up outside Tuscon federal court on March 4, 2016, demanding justice for an Arizona rancher shot and killed by authorities during the siege of an Oregon wildlife refuge.
Robert Anglen/The Republic

A small group of armed protesters, led by Roy Warden, lined up outside Tuscon federal court on March 4, 2016, demanding justice for an Arizona rancher shot and killed by authorities during the siege of an Oregon wildlife refuge.
Robert Anglen / The Republic

Cindy Farnsworth, holds a photo of LaVoy Finicum outside a federal court in Tucson, Ariz, on Friday, March 4, 2016. Protesters gathered in protest over the shooting death of LaVoy Finicum, an Arizona rancher shot and killed by authorities during the Oregon standoff.
Nick Oza/The Republic

A small group of armed protesters, led by Roy Warden, lined up outside Tuscon federal court on March 4, 2016, demanding justice for an Arizona rancher shot and killed by authorities during the siege of an Oregon wildlife refuge. Across the street from the courthouse, counterprotesters said they wanted to share a message of inclusion.
Robert Anglen/The Republic

A small group of armed protesters, led by Roy Warden, lined up outside Tuscon federal court on March 4, 2016, demanding justice for an Arizona rancher shot and killed by authorities during the siege of an Oregon wildlife refuge. Across the street from the courthouse, counterprotesters said they wanted to share a message of inclusion.
Robert Anglen/The Republic

In this Jan. 5, 2016, file photo, Ammon Bundy speaks during an interview at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge near Burns, Ore., during the trial for the Bundy brothers and five others. It has been a month since jury selection began in the trial of the brothers and five others charged in connection with the winter takeover of the national wildlife refuge in southeast Oregon.
Associated Press

In this Jan. 9, 2016, file photo, a man stands guard after members of the 3% of Idaho group arrived at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge near Burns, Ore., along with several other organizations.
Associated Press

FILE - In this Jan. 8, 2016, file photo, Ryan Bundy, center, one of the sons of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, walks through the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge near Burns, Ore. It has been a month since jury selection began in the trial of the Bundy brothers and 5 others charged in connection with the winter takeover of the national wildlife refuge in southeast Oregon
Associated Press

FILE - In this Jan 8, 2016, file photo, Burns resident Steve Atkins, left, talks with Ammon Bundy, center, one of the sons of Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy, following a news conference at Malheur National Wildlife Refuge near Burns, Ore. It has been a month since jury selection began in the trial of the Bundy brothers and 5 others charged in connection with the winter takeover of the national wildlife refuge in southeast Oregon. (AP Photo/Rick Bowmer, file)
AP

In this April 12, 2014, file photo, supporters of the Bundy family hang a sign on the Interstate 15 overpass just outside of Bunkerville, Nev., after the Bureau of Land Management agreed to release the impounded cattle. A federal agent testified in Las Vegas, Nev., Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017, that he saw a "sniper" on a freeway overpass pointing a military-style weapon at him while a crowd of protesters gathered in a dry river bed calling for the government to release Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy's cattle.
Associated Press

In this April 12, 2014, file photo, the Bundy family and their supporters gather together under an Interstate 15 overpass just outside of Bunkerville, Nev., in order to confront the Bureau of Land Management and demand the release of their impounded cattle. A federal agent testified in Las Vegas on Feb. 15, 2017, that he saw a "sniper" on a freeway overpass pointing a military-style weapon at him while a crowd of protesters gathered in a dry river bed calling for the government to release Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy's cattle.
Associated Press

In this April 12, 2014, file photo, the Bundy family and their supporters fly the American flag as their cattle is released by the Bureau of Land Management back onto public land outside of Bunkerville, Nev.
Jason Bean/Associated Press

Federal prosecutors in 2016 arrested 19 people for participating in the Nevada standoff. They were charged with 15 felonies, including conspiracy, obstruction of justice, extortion, using firearms in the commission of crimes, assault and threatening federal officers.

Two men pleaded guilty and trials for the remaining 17 defendants were broken into three tiers based on their alleged levels of culpability.

Four more defendants have since taken plea deals.

But making a solid case against Cliven Bundy and his supporters has eluded prosecutors. Two federal juries in Las Vegas have rejected conspiracy claims against six defendants in earlier trials.

A jury in April deadlocked on charges against four of the first six defendants. It convicted two men on weapons and obstruction charges but dismissed all of the conspiracy charges.

A retrial of the first four defendants ended in another mistrial. A jury in August acquitted two defendants outright and dismissed all but a handful of weapons charges against two others. They pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge, were sentenced to time served and released.

Within minutes of walking free from court last week, Bundy and his sons Ammon and Ryan vowed to continuing grazing their cattle on public land without paying fees.

Cliven Bundy said if land agents try to seize the cattle again, they will be met as they were before.